The Monastery

So far, no method has been found to determine when the history of Petra began. Evidence suggests that the city was founded relatively late, though a sanctuary may have existed there since very ancient times. This part of the country was traditionally assigned to the Horites, probably cave-dwellers, the predecessors of the Edomites. The habits of the original natives may have influenced the Nabataean custom of burying the dead and offering worship in half-excavated caves. However, the fact that Petra is mentioned by name in the Old Testament cannot be verified. 2 Kings 14. 7 seems to be more specific. In the parallel passage, however, Sela is understood to mean simply "the rock" (2 Chr. 25. 12). As a result, many authorities doubt whether any town named Sela is mentioned in the Old Testament.
This is a picture of The Monastery, Petra's largest monument, dates from the first century BC. It was dedicated to Obodas I and is believed to be the symposium of Obodas the god. This information is inscribed on the ruins of the Monastery.




















We ran into this little child, who, sad to say was "working", because he wanted to sell us a postcard of Petra for "one denari", he kept repeating. But he had a big smile on his face, so I gave him some chick peas, and Julie gave him some coins.

Back to Eilat

We had some free time, not much, like an hour, so we walked around a bit, thought about taking a camel ride, then decided not to, and sat down for a cup of the worst coffee I've ever had, and Julie had the worst mint tea she's ever had. And we took in the sights.

I was truly thankful to have met Julie, she made the day fun and exciting and she had a great personality. We ended up losing track of time and literally had to jog back to the bus, uphill, we made it just in time, completely exhausted.
But we rested on the bus ride back to. . .

Israel!
I arrived back to the Shelter around 8:00, took a nice shower and just hung out with some people I had met, like these Dutch guys, Bastian and Peter. They are from Holland and even though I was so tired, we ended up staying up till about 3:00 am sharing our testimonies and talking about the Lord, it was a very special time.

The Shelter Hostel in Eilat

So, let me tell you a bit about the Shelter Hostel.
The Shelter was founded by a Dutch evangelist named "John", the guy preaching in this picture. A very lively and personable guy with a strong desire to minister to people. His primary vision for the hostel is to provide shelter for people who are traveling through Israel, but also provides help for whoever the Lord sends to them.




Currently they're working with the Sudanese refugees from Egypt and the surrounding countries. They have a worship service on Friday nights and on Saturdays during the church service they watch the kids for free. They just randomly come to the Shelter to hang out and have fun. So, there's such a welcoming atmosphere there. You go and you immediately feel at home. The Lord is definitely working in that place.















This group of people had just gotten in from a 2 month Walk the Land tour, which is a very big thing here, and people come from all over the world to do it. They start in the North of Israel and walk and camp all the way to Eilat, the final destination. The Shelter gives anyone who does the Walk free room and board. These guys were a group of Israeli's who had just completed it and they sure seemed joyful to be relaxing and resting at this place.